What are Frantic Items in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe?

If you’re looking for a fun way to experience Mario Kart 8 with your friends, you’ll be able to enjoy plenty of different multiplayer modes. If you’re looking to showcase your racing skills or take it to the streets in an epic battle, you’ll find plenty of ways to keep yourself busy, especially with all of the new tracks being added into the game with the help of the Booster Course Pack.

However, if you’re browsing through the menus before you start up a championship race with your friends, you may have come across the option to turn on Frantic Items, rather than having your standard weapons and power-ups. What does this do for you, and what can you expect? Let’s dive in and see if you need to turn on Frantic Items for your next race!

Frantic Items In Mario Kart 8 Deluxe – What Are They?

If you’re looking to get into some chaos, Frantic Items is one of the best ways to do this. Normally, as you play Mario Kart, you’ll notice that if you’re at the front of the pack, you’ll get stuck with fairly normal items, such as Coins, Bananas, or Shells. However, with Frantic Items turned on, it’s anyone’s game, as you’ll be able to claim just about any item, no matter what place you’re in.

If you want to extend your lead in the first place, you may start getting Stars and Mushrooms, or even a Bullet Bill if you’re lucky enough. Anything goes in this mode, allowing anyone to get anything, no matter where they are. If you’re falling behind, expect to get the best weapons and items around, as well, so you’ll have an even better chance than ever to get back into the race, and steal the victory away from whoever is pulling away from you.

Even if you’re right behind the leader, there’s a high chance of you getting something like a Blue Shell, which can completely change the tide of a race quickly, so you’ll always need to be on your toes if you’re leading. This makes the already chaotic Mario Kart Multiplayer even more insane as well as making for some incredibly memorable races. Give this mode a try if you’re tired of always winning, or coming so close to it to change the tide, no matter your skill level.

If you love everything about this game, make sure that you’re checking out our Mario Kart 8 Deluxe Guide Section, where you’ll be able to find out if the Booster Course DLC is worth your time and money, how to access these new tracks if you purchase it, and which tracks we hope to see make it into the DLC.

Mario Kart 8 Deluxe is available now on Nintendo Switch.